Faithfulness in the Face of Fear

Sometimes it seems that God asks for a lot. I have two friends who are missionaries in West Africa. They are currently in Dakar, Senegal. Right across the street from the university where the guy from Guinea showed up with Ebola.

Scary, right?

Oh, and they have two children, 1 and 3, with them.

Holy smokes, Batman, I'm outta here!

That would likely be my response. I mean, nothing is worth risking my life and the lives of my family in the face of a contagious, incurable disease, right?

Wrong.

Want to know what my friends are asking? Not what is safest, not what is best for them or their family, not what other people think, but rather, "What does God want us to do?"

It's not like they do not understand the situation, or that they are ignorant of the risks; they know fear, but they simply have the bigger picture plainly in view. God put them there for a reason, and they want to be very sure He is ready for them to leave before they do so. They want, more than anything, to be faithful to God's will.

Faithfulness. Fear. How often they seem to go together.

I pray that I never have to make a decision like the one my friends are faced with, but if I do, I pray that I will have the courage to consider God's will before my own, just like our friends are doing. I also realize, that even if I do not face a decision of the gravity of theirs, I make decisions every day that concern God. Everything concerns God, therefore every decision I make concerns Him as well. That made me stop and think: How often do I respond out of fear rather than faithfulness?

I fear what people may think, therefore I refrain from expressing my beliefs. I fear being the outcast, therefore I join the crowd. I fear rejection, therefore I isolate. Nowhere in there is faith to be found. Faith in God who can do all things. Faith in God who pulled Lot's family from Sodom. Faith in God who preserved Daniel in a den of lions. Faith in God who delivered Peter from prison. Faith in God who can protect a missionary family from a deadly virus.

"Be strong and courageous," God told Joshua. "Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go." That from Joshua 1:9. Faithfulness in the face of fear.

Pray for Guy and his family that they would hear God's voice and have the courage to answer his call, whatever his will may be.